Interrupter and spark-advancer for internal-combustion engines.



A. DUTREUX.

INTERRUFTER AND SPARK A'DVANCER FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

I I APPLICATION FILED DEC 6. 1916.

f 1,280,102. PatentedSept. 24,1918.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Fig.2

Fig.1

inventor A. DUTREUX. V VINTERRUPTER AND SPARK ADVANCER FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

. APPLICATION FILED DEC.6| 1916. 1,280,102.

Patented Sept. 24, 1918.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

lnvmtor- I A. DUT'REUX. V INTERRUPTER AND SPABK ADVANCER FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

Patented Sept. 24, 1918.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

' I nvento r. ZMZL .APPLICATION FILED DEC.6.1916.

A. DUTREUX. lNTERRU-PTER AND SPARK ADVANCER FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION-ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-6.1916.

Patented Sept. 24; 1918 4 SHEETS-SHEETV4.

III/1111,11

Fi i? v Inventor, iywZZ/fim .UNlTED ATES PATENT GEE v s'oeus'rs nocrnnux, or ISSY LES MOULINEAUX, FRANCE, Assisnon TO scorers anew/run POUR LECLAIRAGE ELEGTRIQUE DES VEHICULES, or rssy LES noutmnaux, FRANCE, A CORPORATIQN or Human.

EN"E'ERRUPTER AND SPARK-ADVANCER FOR INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINES.

medics.

Zh all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AUGUSTE DUTREUX, engineer, of 26 Rue Jean Jacques Rousseau,

at Issy les Moulineaux, Department of the,

' to provide an arrangement which with the aid of a coupling acting by centrifugal force will permit the spark to be advanced automatically with reference to the position of the piston, in accordance with variations in speed of themotor, and at the same time notwithstanding changes in speed or the motor automatically maintain constant the duration of the engagement of the contacts of the interrupter.

The invention is applicable-to all kinds of generators of electricity (battery, magneto, dynamo, dynamo-magneto and the like) for ignition purposes or for ignition combined with the lighting of vehicles or for starting internal combustion motors.

Heretofore the coupling acting by centrifugal force as: been interposed between the armature shaft of the ignition machine and the operating shaft of the latter; This arrangement has given good results forignition generators, such as magnetos which, for a given speed, always provide at this speed a constant quantity of energy.

It is, however, quite otherwise when the ignition generator is, for example, a dynamo which also furnishes the lighting of the vehicle. a

\Vhether the generator furnishes light or not the energy to be transmitted to the or mature will be variable for a given speed and this will be still more true in the case of a generator of considerable size. It follows that a centrifugal coupling furnishes for a given speed difierent degrees of adfipecification of Letters latentl liatented Sept, 24,, 1918,

Application filed December 6, 1916. Serial No. 135,511.

vance of the spark according to whether the dynamo is fully or lightly loaded with resulting defective operation of the internal combustion engine.

It has been proposed to obviate this disadvantage by placing the centrifugal coupling between the armature of the ignition generator and the interrupter coupled directly to the distributor. The latter while being an improvement on the former arrangement has the disadvantage of requiring (1) an armature, (2) an armature shaft which must be directly actuated by the motor shaft because the disposition of the armature with respect to that part of the armature which carries the interrupter and transmits movement to the distributor must conform absolutely to a given value for a predetermined speed.

The present invention has for its object to provide an arrangement in which the position and speedpf the armature with respect to the automatic advance device may be anything desired and which will permit of the armature being rotated by any suitable form of drive, such as a rigid drive through an elastic coupling, or by belt gearing, cone, friction or the like. Further, Whether the armature is coupled up or not the automatic advancer is always in action as it depends solely on the speed of the petrol motor.-

It is also to be noted that if the source of current for ignition purposes is a battery of accumulators or of cells, the operation of the present arrangement always remains the same.

The accompanying drawings show by way of e rample a constructional form of the invention.

t Figure l is a view partly in section of one rorm of an arrangement in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view on an enlarged scale of one of the parts of Fig. 1.,

Figs. 3, i, 6 and 7 show, by way of example. various forms of rigid or elastic c011 Fig. 9 isa front view of the'same.

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view of-a, modification having two cams, the relative displacement of which governing the duration of engagement of the contact of the interrupter.

Fig. 11 is a front view of the arrangement showing the cams.

Figs. 12 and 13 illustrate respectively two views of the arrangement on the line A B of Fig. 1 at rest and in full operation.

Figs. 14 and 15 show the corresponding positions of the cams,

Referring now to Fig. 1, the shaft of the dynamo is shown at 1 and a shaft of a combustion motor at 2.

In the constructional form of coupling between the two shafts shown in Fig. 1 no relative movement is produced between the driving shaft and the armature shaft, but this is only a special case and Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5 show that driving by toothed pinion, belt, cone or elastic coupling may be .employed, variations in speed between the two shafts, their respective positions and driving slip having no influence on the operation of the system.

The centrifugal governor 3 is mounted on the shaft 2 ofthe motor and consists of two parts independent one of the other 4 and 5, of the shape indicated, one 5 .of which is fast and the other 4 is loose on the shaft 2.

Under the influence of centrifugal force a suitable device shifts the loose part 4 with respect to the part 5 fast on the shaft imparting a rotary movement to the part 4 around the shaft 2. I

Said device may for example comprise oscillating weights or balls suitabl arranged on a plate 6 also loose on the sha 2. These weights or balls may also conveniently directly connect the two parts 4 and 5 without other support.

On an increase of speed the balls or weights displace the part 4 on which is immovably fixed a toothed wheel 7 which controls by means of a toothed wheel 8 the brush 9 of the distributer. A sleeve 10 keyed on an extension in the form of a socket of the part 4 is capable of sliding on a key.11 of the latter parallel with the axis of the shaft 2, the sleeve 10 being guided during'its displacement by a groove 12 cut around the shaft 2 and of appropriate shape and by a screw 13.

The exterior surface of the sleeve 10 forms a cam and comprises one or-more bosses 14, 14 and 14 the boundaries of which are appropriately inclined. An oscillating lever 15 is in constant engagement at its extremity with the outer surface of the sleeve 10 and carries at its other extremity a contact'16 which makes contact with a fixed contact 17 when a boss of thecam engages with the extremity of the arm 15.

irzsonoa The interrupter thus formed acts to break periodically a circuit including a source of current such as a dynamo, battery cells.

From the foregoing it will be seen that with a predetermined speed and independently of the power transmitted to the annature of the generator, there will be a prede termined movement between the parts 4 and 5, and consequently a well defined position of the sleeve 10 depending upon the form of the groove 12; the length of the boss or bosses of the cam with respect to the arm 15 ofthe interrupter will determine the posi-. tion of the break or breaks per revolution of the explosion motor. The brush of the distributor will be advaneed or retarded by a corresponding amount.

Under these conditions with cams of suitable shape the duration of engagement of the contacts of the interrupter may easily be maintained 'sufiiciently constant in spite of variations in speed of the motor at the same time that the cam actuating the interrupter as well as the distributing mechanism is dis placed with respect to the shaft 2.

In the constructional form shown in Figs. 8 and 9 the part 5 of the centrifugal governor is provided with two fingers 20 and 21 which slide in the part v4 by means of the slots 22 and 23. The part 4 carries two or more awls 24 and 25 capable of oscillatin around pivots 26 and- 27: Springs 28 and 29 secured to the part 4 maintain the pawls 24 and 25 in engagement with the fingers 20 and. 21 against the action of centrifugal force. The exterior edges of the pawls 24 and 25 are formed as cams and-are adapted to engagewith the extremity of the arm 15 of the interrupter.

The operation is as follows:

At slow speed the pawls 24 and 25 act on the interrupter 15'with a small part of their length only, when the speed increases the d fingers 20 and 21 slide in the slots 22 and 23 It should be understood that the pawls 24' and 25 may, instead of closing the inter-, rupter, open the latter and that the rods 20 and 21, instead of being fixed on the part 5, may be fixed onthe shaft 2 which is fixe with respect to this part.

Figs. 1) and 11 show a modification in which instead of employing a cam havin an oblique edge sliding and turning on the riv-. ing shaft, two cams are employed provided with abutments, the relative-displacement of menace which governs the duration of engagement surcd by the sprin 38. At the extremity of the lever 81 a n hing point 34 separates the contacts under the action of the cams.

The part a is provided with two slots 35 in which a pin 36 slides. 0n this pin are pivoted the heads of two rods 37 and 38 (Figs. 10 and- 13) the ends of which can rotate, that of the rod 38 around a pin 39 fixed in the part 3 and that of the rod 37 around, a pin 40 mounted in a plate ll loose on a part of the piece 4 concentric with the shaft 1. Movement is communicated to the late 41 from the part 4: by the pins 36 an 40 and the rods 12. The plate e1 carries projections 42 which act as cams placed at the side of the cams 80. The rubbing point 34 always rests on both cams, the right-hand edges of the cams 30 bringing about the rupture of the circuit while the left-hand edges of the cams as control its closure when the direction of. rotation is that indicated in The operation of the arrangement is as follows:

At slowspeed parts 5, t and 4:1 occupy ing from the center of the ascending and descending parts of theright and left edges of the bosses 30 and 42 and the closure during the rotation through an angle as included between the last mentioned radius and the adgoining radius oi the part When the speed increases the part c.- is displaced with respect to the part 3 by the interposed regulater and acts on the part 41 through the rods 3? and 38 so as to displace angularly the part relativel 7 to the 4. The

cams 3i) andail are t us both displaced angularly but by unequal amounts the angular displacement of one being double that of the other. The angle a regulating the engagement of the contacts 17 and 16 can be given suitable. dimensions to the rods, obtain a duration of contact independent of the speed of the motor at the same time that an automatic regulation of the advance of the ignition is secured,

It is to be understood that the construc tional details may be modified without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I clannz' 1. In an arrangement for automatically advancing the ignition-of internal combus-.

the speed of the motor shaft and independently of the energy transmitted to the dynamo.

2. In an arrangement for automatically" advancing the ignition of internal combustion motors, the ignition system including a distributor and an interrupter; a campiece tion motors, the ignition system includinm a distributer, an inter upter; a centrifugal brush of the-distributer in accordance with Ski slidable on themotor shaft; and a centrifu gal governor formoving the cam piece axially, the cams on said cam piece being arranged to engage the interrupter contacts in such manner as to obtain substantially con stant engagement of the interrupter contacts irrespective of the speed of the driving motor. v

3. In an arrangement for automatically advancing the ignition of internal combustion'motors, the ignition system including a distributor and an interrupter; a cam ipliece slidable-on the motor shaft; a centri gal governor includin two plates for moving the cam piece axia ly, the cams on said cam piece being arranged to engage the interrupter contacts in such manner as to obtain substantially constant engagement of the interrupter contacts irrespective of the speed of the driving motor, the cam piece being rotatable with one of the plates of the governor, but adaptedtto slide on the motor shaft.

in such manner that, for each position of the shaft and cam piece the latter will occupy a predetermined position with respect to the arm of the interrupter.

4. In an arrangement for automatically advancing the ignition of internal combos tion motors, the ignition system including a distributor and an interrupter; a centrifugal governor vinterposed between the shaft 0 the motor, the distributor and the interrupter, said governor including a pair of plates, and-cam shaped pawls mounted on one of said plates, which pawls are adapted to be displaced by the displacement of the parts of the governor, the pawls being so shaped as to cause substantially constant on iagement of the interrupter contacts irrespective' of the speed of the driving motor;

5. In an aryangement for automatically advancing the ignition of internal combus: tion motors, the ignition system including an interrupter for the primary circuit, a pair of cams displaceable with relation to each other and with relation to the motor shaft the latter displacement being proportional to the speed of rotation of the shaft.

6. In an arrangement for automatically advancing the ignition of an internal combustion motor, a sleeve on the motor shaft, a plate associated with said sleeve and displaceable angularly with relation thereto, a cam, a centrifugal governor connecting the cam to the plate, the governor being arranged to displace the cam through an an-- gle depending on the speed of the 'motor shaft, a second plate loose on the shaft, a cam mounted thereon and displaceable anularly with relation to the first plate to a egree equal to the displacement existing between the first plate and the sleeve, and means for causing such displacement of the second cam including a pair of rods fixed to the second plate and to the sleeve and a connected at their free ends by a pin moving in a slot in the second plate.

In testimony whereof I atlix my signature, in presence of twowitnesses,

AUGUSTE DUTREUX. Witnesses:

HENRI COHEN, CHAS. P. PRESSLY. 

